Blairdrummond Moss

NS79NW 14 c. 72 97

At Blairdrummond House are a socketed rapier-type blade, and several socketed spearheads from Blair Drummond Moss (J Evans 1881; New Statistical Account {NSA} 1845), two palstaves (one with single loop) and three "flanged palstaves".

The collection, of local finds, was made by the late uncle of Lady Muir (Blairdrummond House); nothing is known of its history or the provenance of the finds.

Visited by OS (VEL) January 1954

A more detailed list and description of these finds, in the possession of Lady Muir, is as follows:-

Flanged Bronze Axe. 4" long, cutting edge 2".

Flanged Bronze Axe. 5" long, cutting edge 1 1/2".

Flanged Bronze Axe 4" long, cutting edge 1 1/2".

Socketed Bronze Axe with single loop. 2" long.

Socketed Bronze spearhead 5 1/2" long with loops on socket.

Socketed Bronze spearhead 7" long with two small holes at base of blade. Bronze spearhead with narrow 7" long blade and 6" long solid haft (all one piece).

Bronze swordblade 12" long with two rivet holes at base.

No additional information was found regarding these finds.

Visited by OS (WDJ) 6 November 1968

In the manuscript collection of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland (under index number SAS: 504.49) there are a pair of (unpublished) watercolours by GP Harding which are dated 1842 and apparently depict part of a collection of antiquities found under Blair Drummond Moss. They were apparently intended for publication together with a paper presented at a meeting of the Society on 13 March 1871, in which Henry Home Drummond of Blair Drummond described a antiquities collected from that area. In the published Proceedings for that year, however, there is only a brief notice to record the presentation of the paper and the exhibition of the objects; the reader was, instead, refered to a then-forthcoming volume of Archaeologica Scotica. In the event, this paper was never printed and the siginificance of the two watercolours was lost.

Subsequent research has shown that a number of the items depicted, including the rapier, are still extant, having remained in the possession of subsequent owners of the Blair Drummond Estate. The collection remains in the possession of Lady Elizabeth Muir, Bankhead, Blair Drummond.

The rapier itself is complete and in good condition though the top of the butt is somewhat irregular; the lengthwise distortion may be due to the method of mounting since discovery. The bronze patina suggests a water deposit; although its boundaries are not well-defined, a curving hilt-mark remains and it is possible that the weapon was deposited complete with its hilt. The trapezoidal butt has two rivet-holes; neither rivet survives although one is depicted in the watercolour and is known to have been still extant in 1871; the condition of the rapier was apparently not otherwise altered over 150 years. The distinct shoulders make an angle of little more than 90 degrees and the blade is of slender form; a broad midrib on the butt merges with arrises defining edge bevels below the shoulder to form a broad midrib along the blade. Dimensions: length 317mm; width at shoulders 65.2mm; thickness of hilt 4.5mm; thickness of blade 4.7mm; length of rivet 20mm.

The combination of trapezoidal hilt and butt-rib indicates that the Blair Drummond rapier belongs to the Cloontia type of Burgess and Gerloff's Group IV. This group is characteristic of the Penard phase and the Cloontia type is mainly found in Ireland; the Blair Drummond example is of typologically early form.

Information from Mr B O'Connor and Mr T Cowie, 10 January 1995.